Pathway to College Soccer Series: Part 4

Are you interested in continuing your academic and athletic career at the next level? If you have the burning desire to play college soccer than there is a school out there that fits your academic, athletic, and personal needs. You just need to find it. Finding the right school is no easy task but when you do it will be totally worth it. I have worked with many high school student-athletes on the college recruiting process and the one thing I tell them is to find a school where you will have the best "college experience." 

The first thing to do as a prospective student-athlete is establish your motivation for playing college soccer, we call this Discovering Your Why. Can you answer the question “Why do you want to play in college?” This is a step that most high school student-athletes avoid or don’t even think about when they start the recruiting process. Your why is your purpose, cause, or belief and it will be your driving force in your college search and college recruiting process. By discovering your why it will help you paint a much clearer picture of what you are looking for from your college experience. 

There are many reasons why you may want to continue your soccer career in college. Another way to think about this question is to answer how playing soccer has played a role in your overall development as a student, athlete, and as a person. 

Here are some reasons why high school student-athletes continue to play at the next level

• Love of the Game - If you don’t enjoy playing than you should not consider playing in college. You will have to invest a lot of time, energy, and effort and if don’t love it than why do it.
  

• Sense of Purpose - You have played soccer so long and it is who you are and you couldn’t imagine not playing soccer.
  

• Competition - Having that competitive nature is what drives you.

• Academically Focused - Soccer can open doors and opportunities that will enhance your academic advancement.
  

• Create New Friendships - Being part of a team will prove the opportunity to create new social network.

• Time Management - Being a student-athlete requires discipline, you must have excellent time management skills in order to balance life as a student-athlete.
  

• Healthy Lifestyle - Being a college student-athlete will allow you to be physically fit and encourage you to live a healthy lifestyle.
  

• Pathway to the Pros - If you are fortunate enough to have talent to become a professional than playing the college game at the highest level can provide a pathway to the pros.

So what is your Why? Before you do anything else establish your motives. Get your copy of Designing Your Pathway to College Sports and create your Personal Development Plan.

• Personal SWOT Analysis

• Discover Your Why

• Goal Setting 

• Personal Mission Statement

By navigating through this process you will discover who you are, what is important to you, and your goals and aspirations. 

Visit www.GuidingFutureStarsAcademy.com --- (GFS Store Tab) and start Designing Your Pathway to College Sports.